Thursday, April 12, 2007

I got an email from NOW (National Organization for Women), a few days ago asking me to join a letter writing campaign calling for the firing of Don Imus for his now infamous "Nappy Haired Ho's" comment about the Rutgers women's basketball team. I read the email, paused to reflect a moment, and deleted the email. Why? Wasn't I offended? The comment was in bad taste, but if you listen to Imus you come to expect tactlessness. Ultimately, you want to know why I deleted the email? Because, I'm also a member of the American Civil Liberties Union. This is America people. Ever read the First Amendment? Let me quote it verbatim for you: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances. "If Imus wants to make himself look like a heel on the public airwaves, he has that right. If the KKK wants to march through a town where they aren't wanted to prove how backwards and stupid they truly are, then they have that right too. The only time that speech isn't free is when what you say can actually cause physical harm ( Schenck v United States (1919), http://www.socialstudieshelp.com/CourtCases.htm). Blacks call themselves niggas and hos all the time, and whites call themselves honkys and crackers. Using the slang of another race to describe that said race looks and sounds stupid, but is protected free speech. If members of other races do not like outsiders using their slang to describe them, the quit calling themselves that. George Carlin says that its not what you say, but the manner in which it is said, that really matters. I happen to agree.